Skype, Judges, Trial & Controversies December 22, 2012

Bangladesh is observing a series of events that was unexpected to the ordinary men as well as to the experts of legal practice.
That all started with the disclosure in the weekly ‘Economist’ of conversations of a judge of International war crime tribunal that is conducting the trial of war crimes against humanities that occurred in 1971 during the liberation war of Bangladesh.

Economist gathered the records of the conversation in the skype of 17 hours and also 230 E-mails between the judge,Chairman of Tribunal -1 and a lawyer based in Brussels. The lawyer is known to him, an expert on international law and a researcher on the crimes against humanity. The Economist also interviewed the judge and lawyer.
But the contents of the conversation raises questions as it exposes some controversial information such as government interference in the judicial process, pressure from the ministers to hasten the judgment, dictation from an outsider to frame the accusation and judgment etc. BD government accused Economist of hacking the skype conversation and filed case against 2 of the editors for contempt of court.
The Skype conversation is then published in a Bangladeshi daily ‘AmarDesh’ that created a stir in the political and legal circle. The judge, Chairman of the tribunal Muhammed Nizamul Huq resigned from his post. The government felt embarrassed and said the judge resigned on his personal ground. Government immediately replaced the judge and reformed the tribunal.

Case is filed against the daily to publish the personal conversation and interfering the judicial process. Fear was mount that the editor may be arrested.
The defense also took the opportunity and appeal to the tribunal to restart the trial from the beginning.

The political activists of Jamaat and Shibir whose leaders are mainly in the accused list have started street agitation over a month which is becoming more violent as the time passes on the demand to cancel the trial and release their leaders.

BNP, the main opposition party has recently extended its ‘moral support’ to the strike called by Jamaat on the plea that it is supporting the political right of the Jamaat as it is a registered political party to organize processions, meeting and hartal.
The Government and political wing AL is strongly against the BNP’s role and accusing it to obstruct the trial of war crimes by supporting Jamaat activities.

The trial falls into a state of confusion with the conflicting developments in the country. The law minister Barrister Shafique Ahmed and Information Minister Hasanul Haque Inu have decided to clear all the questions regarding the trial.

The Government is determined to complete the trial in its present tenure.